Columns

Living just off Highway 9 in Ben Lomond, I am often caught up in lines of traffic going “nowhere” for minutes at a time. So much so, that I keep a notepad and pen in the console next to my seat, jotting down random...

“Attitude is the ‘little’ thing that makes a big difference.” —Winston Churchill Each morning, I swing my legs over the side of my bed, slide my feet into “sadly worn” slippers and make my morning’s first cup of coffee where I will take my first...

If you, like me, were born between 1930 and 1946 (worldwide), you are one of the rare surviving senior citizens of this special group. Your age range is between 77 and 93 years old and you are the last who can remember the impact...

If you see a recurring theme in my columns about growing successfully in a shady garden, it’s because my last three houses have all had a lot of shade. You’d think I’d have so much experience by now that all my plants would bloom...

We all have traditions that we look forward to every year during the holidays. For some it’s the annual trip to the Christmas tree farm. For others it’s planning a holiday get-together with friends and family. While decorating my tree this year, I thought...

It’s clear that storm fatigue is a real thing. From overhearing conversations in the grocery store line to hearing folks express gratitude for their good luck, or even finding silver linings in their misfortunes, it seems like everyone is feeling the effects of these...

“Water, water everywhere, nor any drop to drink.” Samuel Taylor Coleridge penned these words in the “Rime of the Ancient Mariner.” He referred to a fateful ocean voyage in the 1800s, but it could very well reflect our need for clean drinking water today. To...

Imagine being 5 years old and learning (from the other kids) it was possible, just possible…there was NO Santa Claus. This 5-year-old was devastated. In my little and quite poor hometown, the one hope we kids had was to get our one wish for Christmas...

I don’t grow corn in my small, shady garden, so I’m not sure how tall they’d be by now if I planted on May Day when the soil was 50 degrees, but that’s how the saying goes. And from what I’ve read about the...

When I think about precious stones, rubies, diamonds and sapphires come to mind. They are known as the “Red, White and Blue” stones in the industry. Recently, I visited William Greene Fine Jewelry Design out of curiosity. Little did I know about their rich...